The Johns Hopkins University Energetics Research Group (JHU ERG) has, with support from the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), completed the construction and demonstration testing of a new facility to simulate liquid rocket engine cooling channels with cryogenic methane and liquid natural gas (LNG). The facility includes the capability to produce fuel mixtures in the laboratory to test sensitivity and impact of contaminants in methane fuel on operational performance metrics such as thermal stability (the propensity of the fuel to form carbonaceous deposits within the cooling channels, and thus inhibit heat transfer and increase pressure drop within the system), as well as investigate the heat transfer performance of various fuels.

Model of the Month

The Vulnerability Toolkit, or VTK, is a suite of software tools that support the performance of ballistic vulnerability and lethality studies involving military systems. The primary purpose for the toolkit is to provide a “one-stop shop” for ballistic vulnerability & lethality analysis, by...